Hawaii 2020

We decided to take a family vacation before another ER or hospital visit could spoil our plans. In 3 short weeks we planned and booked a trip to Maui, Hawaii.

Day 1 Saturday, March 7:

Zoe and I are animal lovers so we were very excited when we found out there was a good chance we could see sea turtles for free at Ho'okipa Park. We even got the added bonus of finding 3 seals while there.

Most of those round smooth bumps in the background are actually turtles. I could not believe how many were there.

Ka'anapalali Resort - view from our room

Day 2 Sunday, March 8th:

We enjoyed the day at our resort.

We found one of the resort's pet cats.

Day 3 Monday, March 9:

We took a tour on the Road to Hana.

We saw beautiful eucalyptus trees.

Ke'anae Park

We made sure to stop at Aunty Sandy's famous banana bread. It did not disappoint. I wish we got more than 2 loaves.

Haiku

Waianapanapa State Park

We stopped at Black Sand Beach (Pa’iloa Beach). It was beautiful.

We found a cave.

We found a small blowhole.

It was a long day and Levi has renamed "The Road to Hana" to "The Road to Hell." The second half was long and boring. Both Zoe and Levi took the opportunity to take a nap.

Day 4 Monday, March 10th:

We decided to fly over and check out Pearl Harbor in Oahu, Hawaii. This was Levi's favorite part of our trip.

We toured the USS Arizona Memorial.

Next was the USS Bowfin Submarine Memorial and Park.

Next we toured the Battleship Missouri Memorial.

The picture above and below show where the surrender agreement was signed that ended World War II.

The next 2 pictures show a private tour we received by a kind employee who invited us to see the bottom to the ship where a hallway stretched the whole length of the ship. They call it Broadway Hallway.

Last we toured the Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum .

Day 5 Wednesday, March 11th:

We enjoyed snorkeling and whale watching at Molokini Island Preserve.

We saw several whales. It was fun to see all the baby whales with their mothers.

Day 6 Thursday, March 12:

We enjoyed another resort day and attended the Te Au Moana Luau.

Day 7 Friday, March 13th:

Levi and I enjoyed a relaxing massage at the Ka'anapali Resort.

We stopped at Lahaina historic whaling village and ate dinner at Kimos Restaurant. Zoe even received a quick music lesson.

Day 8 Saturday, March 14th:

We spent another day that the Ka'anapali resort where Zoe made new friends. Zoe tried playing a little football.

Day 9 Sunday, March 15th:

We decided to stay another week, but needed to change rooms. This is the view from our new room. The view wasn't as great as the first, but the condo was bigger.

We revisited Lahaina historic whaling village and ate lunch at Bubba Gump Shrimp. The food was delicious. However, they did not have Dr. Pepper, Forest's favorite drink.

Of course, we had to try the shaved ice while in Hawaii.

We found another one of the resort's pet cats. In fact, we even found a third cat before we left Hawaii.

Day 10 Monday, March 16th:

We enjoyed a beach day at Ka'anapali Beach.

We build sand castles, played in the sand and swam in the ocean.

Zoe loves water. She keeps begging up to move by the ocean.

We attended a second Luau called Drums of the Pacific.

Day 17 Tuesday, March 17th

We decided to fly back to Oahu to swim with dolphins at Dolphin Quest. These dolphins are allowed to chose to participate or not. They have 6 dolphins at Dolphin Quest and Hoku decided he wanted to swim with us. Swimming with the dolphins allowed me to check another item off my bucket list.

Hoku splashing Zoe.

Waving goodbye.

Day 18 Wednesday, March 18th:

Zoe started her online schooling this week due to Covid-19. This has definitely been a new adventure. We are slowly getting the hang of it.

If you play close attention while walking around the resort you will find tiny lizards. Zoe and I liked going "lizard hunting." We found about 10 lizards.

Day 19 Thursday, March 19th:

Today Zoe did more online schooling and then we hung out at the resort.

Everywhere we walked on this resort we saw beautiful views. We really enjoyed this nighttime view.

Day 20 Friday, March 20th:

Our last day in Hawaii we spent at the resort, then the dreaded time came for us to leave. We would have happily stayed another week, but Covid-19 was closing things down so we decided it was time to head home and face the cold and snow.

I'm so thankful for the opportunity to go on vacation with my family and have new experiences. I am grateful for the wonderful adventure that is my life. I would have never guessed I would experienced all that I have in this life. Life is beautiful.